BN Fight Facts: Bam! Rodriguez stops Sunny Edwards in nine rounds in unexpected Fight of the Year contender

THE RESULT: Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez takes the undefeated file of Sunny Edwards and provides the IBF flyweight belt to the WBO strap he already owned. The struggle was waved off by Edwards’ coach Grant Smith after nine accomplished rounds on account of the punishment his cost had taken and the harm accomplished to each eyes. In the dying seconds of the eighth session Rodriguez caught Edwards flush with an enormous left hand to drop Edwards for the first time in his profession.

KEY MOMENTS: After an enthralling high-quality contest, the defining second got here proper at the finish of spherical eight when Rodriguez landed one of the punches of his profession to ship Edwards to the canvas. In spherical two a swelling beneath the left eye of Edwards started to kind which turned notably worse as the rounds progressed. There had been some nice back-and-forth exchanges between the two which was an uncommon sight in a struggle that includes the often defensively-minded Edwards

RECORDS: Rodriguez strikes to 19-0 (12) whereas Edwards drops to 20-1 (4).

TALKING POINT: The ways of Edwards to remain inside vary of the Rodriguez attain benefit. In doing so it positioned him in the firing line all through however made for a terrifically entertaining struggle. One the place each males come out stronger for it.

QUOTABLE: “It was difficult,” mentioned Rodriguez. “He was a lot quicker, a lot smarter than I thought. I made him wanna fight and he got caught. I brought something outta him tonight he couldn’t handle.”

“From about the second round I couldn’t really see out my left eye. It made it very hard to get away from his lead hand,” Edwards mentioned. “Jesse’s a hell of a fighter. I knew that before the fight and I sure as hell know that after the fight.”

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? In his post-fight interview Rodriguez referred to as out WBC super-flyweight belt holder Juan Francisco Estrada. A struggle that will add much more power to a résumé which options the scalps of Carlos Cuadras, Srisaket Sor Rungvisai and now Sunny Edwards.

Edwards, in the meantime, spoke of a doable struggle towards fellow British flyweight and 2020 Olympic gold medallist Galal Yafai who moved to 6-0 (4) on tonight’s undercard beating Rocco Santomauro over 10 rounds.